Senior Scientist – Lab Automation Engineer

AstraZeneca is a global biopharmaceutical company focused on innovating and delivering life-saving medicines while prioritizing sustainability and minimizing our environmental impact. We foster a collaborative, inclusive culture where colleagues are empowered to share ideas and feel valued and rewarded. 

Pharmaceutical Technology & Development (PT&D) transforms cutting-edge science into medicines for millions, working across the value chain to design, develop, and scale up drug products from early research through commercial manufacture. 

In Chemical Development, we combine scientific expertise and innovation to create and optimize sustainable, commercially viable processes for active pharmaceutical ingredients. By collaborating widely and embracing new technologies, we continually improve how we deliver medicines. 

We are offering an exciting Senior Scientist position as a lab automation engineer, uniting people and technology by designing and optimizing automated solutions for synthetic and analytical chemistry in chemical development. You’ll play a key technical role in advancing our Lab of the Future program—guiding the orchestration of complex lab processes and ensuring smooth, efficient data flows across our digital lab ecosystem. 

You’ll collaborate closely with chemists, engineers, data scientists, and IT to enable data-rich experimentation and smarter process development. Your hands-on responsibilities include working with automation hardware and software, programming and troubleshooting systems, supporting integration projects, and ensuring all solutions are robust and quality compliant. 

What You’ll Do

In this role, you will: 

• Ensure the design, implementation, and integration of automated platforms for synthetic and analytical chemistry.

• Program and operate laboratory robotics and work closely with colleagues and vendors to optimize system performance. 

• Use, develop, and refine control software and integrations leveraging coding expertise, deliver solutions for data capture and integrations with existing digital systems.

• Lead or support technology evaluation, platform upgrades, and new automation initiatives that advance laboratory digital maturity. 

• Ensure compliance with laboratory and IT quality standards.

Key Skills & Experience

A successful candidate will have: 

• A degree in engineering (e.g., chemical, mechatronic, robotics, or mechanical), chemistry, computer science, or a related technical field (Master's with 2-3 years experience, PhD or equivalent professional qualification) with hands-on experience in laboratory or process automation. 

• Proficiency in programming and scripting for automation platforms, robotics, and laboratory informatics. 

• Experience with CAD and prototyping new tools and equipment.

• Operational experience with laboratory automation systems.

• Demonstrated ability to solve complex technical problems with excellent teamworking and communication skills. 

Desirable skills and experience

• Synthetic organic chemistry laboratory experience.

• Hands-on knowledge of laboratory scheduling/orchestration software.

• Experience within a process or manufacturing environment.

• Exposure digital workflow management. 

• Familiarity with data science methodologies and AI/ML implementations in laboratory automation. 

• Experience using and programming controllers (e.g.  PLC’ controllers). 

AstraZeneca is an equal opportunity employer. AstraZeneca will consider all qualified applicants for employment without discrimination on grounds of disability, sex or sexual orientation, pregnancy or maternity leave status, race or national or ethnic origin, age, religion or belief, gender identity or re-assignment, marital or civil partnership status, protected veteran status (if applicable) or any other characteristic protected by law.